One of the reasons blogging became so popular waaaaaaay back in the day is because it was conducive to conversation. And today, the conversation on a particular topic is getting a boost – the topic is poverty.
Blog Action Day is an organization that encourages discussion on a single topic each year. They do this by asking bloggers to write on that topic on a particular day, in hopes that a continued, helpful discussion will take place.
This year the topic is (you guessed it) poverty. I wrote a post earlier (one I was planning to write anyway!), so today I’m just going to refer you back to the series I’ve been doing on the topic. (I wrote early to submit my post to the blog carnival at Missionary Blog Watch – check there today or tomorrow for other posts on the topic from a Christian perspective).
Here’s the series so far:
- Poverty – living on the minimum wage in Mexico (featuring a music video)
- Poverty (part II) – questions about poverty, links, and another video
- Poverty and Community – when helping the poor fails, and a suggestion of how we can improve things
These are difficult and controversial topics – I would love to hear your comments, whether you agree or not!
Ixtapaluca Time
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Yes, the issue of global poverty is indeed incredibly complex. We lived in Nicaragua (the 2nd poorest nation in our hemisphere) for 3 years and it was there we were confronted with abject poverty and saw firsthand both its immediate and long-term affects. There are of course many approaches to alleviating poverty – most of which fall under the categories of “aid” or “development” – but ultimately what I have learned is that the best way to address the issue of poverty is to first address the human heart directly with the gospel and that, in the final analysis, as well as with its implications of living in an intimate, closely connected community of believers, is the best and most sure path toward a viable, long-term solution to this complex issue.